Florence And The Machine: The Story Behind 'Game of Thrones' Song

Owen Stevens

The musical moment happens while Podrick, Brienne, Jaime, Tormund Giantsbane (Kristofer Hivju), Tyrion Lannister (Peter Dinklage), and Ser Davos Seaworth (Liam Cunningham) are gathered around a fire, awaiting the arrival of the Night King and the Army of the Dead.

When Tyrion requests a song, Pod steps up to the plate, singing mournfully: "High in the halls of the kings who are gone". The sombre words, about "kings who are gone" and Jenny dancing "with her ghosts", suggests she could end up the lone survivor of the entire series, left with nothing but memories of her loved ones.

She couldn't remember their names. It's more than just a sweet, sad song about a bygone age. Welch from Florence + The Machine, as the band has recorded the haunting new ballad for the show which was adapted directly from the books.

Tom of Sevenstreams sings the song to an elderly woman known as the Ghost of High Heart in repayment for her revealing her prophetic dreams to the group. The key takeaway is that Duncan gave up his claim to the Iron Throne when he married Jenny of Oldstones. Targaryen had to choose between inherting the Iron Throne or Jenny, ultilmately choosing the latter. It's surely no coincidence that a song connected to a Targaryen forced to choose between love and duty makes its debut even as Jon and Dany face the ultimate test of their relationship. If we dig into the Targaryen family tree, we find that Dany's father, Aerys II Targaryen (The Mad King) was killed by Jamie.

"Jenny's Song" is the sung by the knights drinking wine, shortly after Jorah is given the Heartsbane sword and before Jon and Daenerys' conversation in the crypts.

So there are a couple of aspects of "Jenny's Song" that could predict what's to come. She naturally questions the truth behind it - ultimately, Jon's going by a vision Bran had and what Samwell read in an old book - but Jon appears to be more disturbed by the revelation, having kept his distance from Dany for most of the episode.

As Vanity Fair notes, Rhaegar became fixated on the idea that he was the Prince That Was Promised, and may have actually written "Jenny's Song". In the books, during the Tourney of Harrenhal, Rhaegar plays a song for Lyanna Stark - the woman he fell in love with, Wednesday in secret, and had a child, Aegon Targaryen/Jon Snow, with. We'll break it down.

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